title: [Recurrent voluntary ingestion of metallic objects in prison by a female patient].
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Recurrent and intentional ingestion of metallic objects is a rare but important phenomenon. It has attracted great interest among mental health professionals over the last decades. However, this issue is rarely reported in the literature. A deep exploration of its clinical and specific psychopathological aspects remains limited.
  
  
  METHODS
  We report the case of a 32-year-old female patient, who was sentenced to 20 years in prison for homicide against her cousin, the daughter of an uncle who had raped her when she was 14. This affair was hushed by the patient's family and the patient was submitted to several acts of abuse by her family. Following her incarceration, she repeatedly ingested metallic objects requiring repeated admissions in a department of surgery for endoscopic extractions or surgical interventions. She impulsively ingested more than 30 times various metallic objects such as wire, razor blades, spoons, etc., under the pressure of impulsiveness and massive anxiety. Voluntary metal ingestions, associated with iterative self-mutilation behaviors, took place within the framework of a borderline personality disorder, the incarceration and the conditions of imprisonment playing a role in initiating and retaining the behavior.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Through this case report, we examine the specific psychiatric aspects of intentional ingestion of metallic objects in order to better understand this behavior.
authors.affiliation: Service universitaire de psychiatrie, CHU Hassan II de Fès, Fès, Maroc; Faculté de médecine et de pharmacie de Fès, université Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah, Fès, Maroc. Electronic address: aalouanerachid@yahoo.fr.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Aalouane
authors.affiliation: Service universitaire de psychiatrie, CHU Hassan II de Fès, Fès, Maroc; Faculté de médecine et de pharmacie de Fès, université Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah, Fès, Maroc.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Lahlou
authors.affiliation: Service universitaire de psychiatrie, CHU Hassan II de Fès, Fès, Maroc; Faculté de médecine et de pharmacie de Fès, université Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah, Fès, Maroc.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Aarab
authors.affiliation: Service universitaire de psychiatrie, CHU Hassan II de Fès, Fès, Maroc; Faculté de médecine et de pharmacie de Fès, université Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah, Fès, Maroc.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Barrimi
authors.affiliation: Service universitaire de psychiatrie, CHU Hassan II de Fès, Fès, Maroc; Faculté de médecine et de pharmacie de Fès, université Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah, Fès, Maroc.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Zaidi
authors.affiliation: Service universitaire de psychiatrie, CHU Hassan II de Fès, Fès, Maroc; Faculté de médecine et de pharmacie de Fès, université Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah, Fès, Maroc.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Khelafa
authors.affiliation: Service universitaire de psychiatrie, CHU Hassan II de Fès, Fès, Maroc; Faculté de médecine et de pharmacie de Fès, université Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah, Fès, Maroc.
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Rammouz
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001883:Borderline Personality Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology; D002649:Child Abuse / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy; D002650:Child Abuse, Sexual / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy; D016099:Endoscopy, Gastrointestinal; D005260:Female; D005548:Foreign-Body Migration / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy; D041981:Gastrointestinal Tract; D006708:Homicide / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008016:Life Change Events; D008670:Metals; D010842:Pica / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology*; D011329:Prisoners / Q000523:psychology*; D012652:Self Mutilation / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy; D012931:Social Environment; D012932:Social Facilitation
chemical_list: D008670:Metals
keywords: Borderline personality; Ingestion d’objets métalliques; Ingestion of metallic objects; Milieu carcéral; Personnalité borderline; Prison environment